Author: Alex Mann

Alex Mann, 23, is senior multi-platform journalism major at the University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism. He interned The Capital in Annapolis, Maryland as a general assignment reporter. Mann is a managing editor at the Beltway Bulletin and the senior sports editor for Stories Beneath the Shell. After graduation he hopes to pursue a career as a long-form journalist covering the environment, public health and social injustice.

By Alex Mann An elephant tranquilizer has started showing up in Anne Arundel County drug overdoses. Tests on two fatal overdoses in the county last month revealed the drug’s presence, which complicates the county’s severe opioid epidemic by further endangering addicts and first responders. Carfentanil, a synthetic opioid used in veterinary practices to sedate large mammals like elephants and rhinos, is approximately 10,000 times more … Continue reading New, deadly developments in Anne Arundel opioid crisis

By Alex Mann This is an account of Kyle’s story based on his memory. To protect the reputation of the subject, his family and friends, this article uses pseudonyms. This article also contains explicit language. After drinking a fifth of Jameson Irish Whiskey, at least 12 Coors Lights, popping a handful of 5 milligram Percocet and crushing and snorting a 30-milligram Roxicet, Kyle loaded “one … Continue reading Beneath the scars: Kyle’s story

By Alex Mann This article kicks off a Beltway Bulletin series showing the human side of the opioid epidemic. Beneath each set of eye-popping statistics and combative policy proposals, there is a series of stories of the people who experienced the epidemic first hand, one way or another. Beneath each scar is a story. Gov. Larry Hogan has unveiled a plan to combat a resurgent heroin … Continue reading New plan for resurgent heroin epidemic

By Alex Mann On Jan. 10 Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced an initiative to relieve student debt and invest in projects at various colleges and universities around the state. “Having a college education is more important now than ever before,” Gov. Hogan said in a press release, “but the harsh reality many face today is that earning a college degree often goes hand-in-hand with accumulating … Continue reading Hogan unveils student debt and tuition relief plan